Fallon Clinic bets on bones
New orthopedic unit will become basis for Center of Excellence downtown
In something of a medical world coup, Fallon Clinic has hired two star surgeons to rebuild its defunct orthopedic unit that will eventually form the basis for a partnership with Saint Vincent Hospital to create a Center of Excellence in musculoskeletal medicine.
The move, both organizations say, may align more of the Bay State medical universe’s gravity toward the heart of the Commonwealth, drawing more patients from inside and outside the Central Mass. geography. As the still-in-the-works Center for Excellence develops, it will become a big driver of growth for both Fallon Clinic, and St. Vincent, says Marc Greenwald, chief medical officer at Fallon Clinic.
It’s unclear how this might impact other area doctors or hospitals, but Morgan, who will chair the new orthopedic unit says it may actually benefit other area specialists.
"We’re not interested in reslicing the pie here," Morgan says. "We want to bring in more pie."
Return to Worcester
Neither Morgan nor Balcom are strangers to the city of seven hills. Both completed their residencies in the 1980s at UMass, and trained under Dr. Arthur Pappas. Morgan, who lives in Boylston, was an orthopedic surgeon at UMass until 2001. Balcom’s wife, Sharon, is from Worcester. Both say the return trip to Central Mass. is something they find personally and professionally exciting.
It is the second time that Morgan has been tasked to build an orthopedic department from scratch. That was his duty when St. Elizabeth recruited him away from UMass to the Bone and Joint Center five years ago. While there, he brought in his former colleague Balcom, who was in private practice in Connecticut. The two will reunite at Fallon Cinic, and be joined by several other staffers who worked with them in Boston.
"You worry about the unknown in medicine," Morgan says of the professional partnership. "When something works, you keep it, or at least try to replicate it."
Rounding out the new team will be Dr. John Stevenson, a sports medicine internist who focuses on non-surgical treatments for sports injuries. Among their duties in building the department will be to act as team doctors for the Worcester Sharks, the city’s new minor league hockey team - a marketing move aimed at communicating the expertise of the new group.
Specialties will be draw
Fallon Clinic Chief Medical Officer Marc Greenwald says that the major goal in recruiting Morgan and Balcom was to offer their specialties to patients.
Morgan specializes in a unique brand of elbow surgery. Balcom specializes in knee and joint replacements. Both are potential growth services for the Fallon Clinic, Greenwald says.
Morgan’s high profile already seems to be yielding dividends for the Fallon Clinic. On the first day of work earlier this month, he already had 50 surgeries scheduled and more than 100 patients waiting to see him.
"I have always been fond of Central Mass. and this was a real opportunity to do some very special things," Balcom says. "We’ll create a one-stop shopping for patients as far as convenience. It’s a model that has gained popularity in other parts of the country."
From a business perspective, the goal is to increase the number of patients from outside the Fallon Clinic who seek out the group for a particular service, Morgan says. That is the group most likely to come from areas outside the traditional geography of Fallon Clinic customers - especially those from the Boston-area. The growth of that cohort of patients will fuel how quickly the new orthopedic unit grows. Plans are already underway to hire perhaps two or more surgeons, depending on demand for the services.
While name recognition is useful, it only goes so far and what will ultimately draw more patients to the city is the Center of Excellence that Fallon Clinic and St. Vincent create, the doctors say.
Details of the center are still being worked out, says Arthur St. Germain, spokesman for St. Vincent Hospital. But much of the groundwork has been laid. Generally speaking, a Center of Excellence is a term for a program combining advanced and multi-disciplinary approaches to medicine, and often carries special accreditation from a government or medical body. The hospital has already interviewed and identified "key personnel" on the staff who will likely work in conjunction as part of it, St. Germain says.
St. Vincent is working with the Human Motion Institute, a consultancy based in Canonsburg, PA, that specializes in working with hospitals to develop musculoskeletal programs. They are scheduled to meet in the middle of this month to discuss the project, says St. Germain, but a timeline has yet to be hammered out.
But the vision is of a comprehensive center that involves specialists from not just orthopedic medicine, but practitioners from other medical disciplines such as rheumatologists or endocrinologists. Plans are also underway to bring less traditional methods of therapy like acupuncture and massage. The goal, says Morgan, is to create a place that focuses on making a patient feel better, regardless of the methods.
"As this gets off the ground, it will be a very important part of Fallon Clinic’s future," says Greenwald.
Kenneth J. St. Onge can be reached at kstonge@wbjournal.com
WBJ Web Partners
Most Recent
Most Recent
0 Comments